Sound-amplifying horn



Apnl 12,1927. J. B. HAWLEY SOUND AMPLIFYING HORN Filed Feb. 24, 1925 I5 Sheets-Sheet l Emu 3 y 1,624,242 April 12 19272 J, B. HAWLEY soUND AMPLI'FYING HORN Filedreb. 24. 1925 l s sheets-sheet z ywwm@ April l2, 1927. J' a HAWLEY soUND AMPLIFYING HORN Filed Feb. 24, 1925 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Patentecl- Apr. l l2, 19271 UNITED! s 'rATi-:s- Piirlsia'rA o `v 1,624,242 FFICE..

mssn n. HAWLEY, or WILMETTE, ILLINoIs. .a

soUNn-AMPLIFYING norm. l

Original application died February 23, 1928,4 eria1`1op62-0.579. Divided and this application illed February 24, 1925.

M invention relates to an improved sound am lifying horn which is constructed 1n suc a manner that the usual undesirable tonal qualities inherent in other horns are elminated. ,c

.One of the objects of my invention is to provide an improved sound amplifying horn constructed with relatively soft horn walls so as to substantially eliminate resonance.

further object of this .invention is to provide a novel 'sound amplifying horn composed of accretions of interlaced fibers.

s Yet another object resides in providing a sound amplifying horn composed of accretionsof interlaced fibers wherein the superficial fibers of the relatively soft horn wall are compressed and, or, otherwise to provide a wall havin zones of variant density* which tend to dea en resonance.

A vfurtherobject is to provide a sound amplifying horn having an interlaced fiber wall wherein the superficial fibers of -the relatively soft horn wall are suitably treated to provide a somewhat smooth or polished surface thereby to provide surfaces of greater sound reflecting' efficiency and of greater durability.

Another ob] ect of this invention resides in providing a simple and inexpensively manufactured sound amplifying horn.`

These and other objects of the invention will be apparent from a perusal of the fol= lowing specification when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein z- Figure 1 shows .in section and elevation the apparatus for producing a horn of the character referred to.

Figure 2 shows in fragmentary sectional elevation the construction of a part of the apparatus shown in Figure 1.

Figure 2"l is a. fragmentary elevation show ing a certain feature of the present-construction, while Figure 2l? is a fragmentary section designed to yshow other features thereof.

Figure 3 is a longitudinal sectional elevation.showing one stage-in lthe process of manufacturing a horn in accordance with my present invention.

Figure 4 is a longitudinal sectional elevation showing another stage inthe process of manufacture. r

Figure 5 is a similarview showing another stage in the manufacture of the improved horn.

Figure 6 is a longitudinal section of a Serial No. 11,145;

horn( constructed in accordance with the present invention and having applied to the f exterior face thereof a coating.

And, Figure 7 is a cross section showing both outer and inner faces of the horn as provided with coating material.

The present application is a division of my pending app filed February 23, 1923, wherein my` improved horn and the method of making it is disclosed and claimed.

ication Serial No. 620,579,

Referring more in detail to the annexed drawings, numeral 1 designates the former, or mandrel on'which is formed the sound horn. During the first two stages of the process of manufacture of a horn this former is secured tothe upper end of a pipe 2 which may be connected by means of a flexible connector to a suction device for the purpose of withdrawing liquid through which liquids may drain to be carried off by means of pipe 2.

The former vcomprises a core 7 together with a plurality of layers ofmaterial arranged thereover. The core 7 is provided with a plurality of longitudinal and transverse grooves connected at their lower ends, by means of openings 8, with the concavity 6. Fitting closely over the surface of the core 7 is a perforated sheet met-al form 9 which serves to support on the core 7 a fine mesh wire netting l0 and prevent the same from being distorted by pressure upon the surface thereof. Around the lower beveled edge of the core 7 is arranged a fiexible band 11, preferably constructed of rubber, the purpose of which will appear hereinafter. In` the construction shown in Figure .1 there is provided a vibrating apparatus12 for the purpose of :sov

vibrating the upper portion of the container Y 3 to keep the, contents thereof in agitated condition and to assist 'in causing uniform deposit of the fibrous materials u' on the form. While applicant has disc osed a lll singlemeans for vibrating a portion .only

of the container, this is to be understood as illustrative only since applicant has devised other means for agitatinflr the liquids2 including mechanism for simultaneously vibrating both the. top and bottom of the container. It is also found very satisfactory to cause agitation -of the suspension by means of a )et or jets of air forced into the receptacle in which the suspension is contained.

The apparatus shown in Figure 4 is for the purpose of carrying out a stage in the method of making the horn subsequent to those stages which are carried outin the apparatus of Figures 1 to 3 inclusive. This apparatus comprises a base plate 13 corresponding to the base plate of the previously described apparatus, said base plate hav-v ing a concave upper surface from which leads a pipe 14 for drawing off liquids from the interior of :the apparatus. A plunger or like device 15 forces the plate 13 up against the bottom of the container` 16 which is prevented from moving upwardly by means of a rigid portion of the apparatus against which the top of container 16 presses.

Opening through the wall of container 16 is a pipe 17 by means of which steam can be admitted to cause drying thereof. I,

Figure 5 shows a mechanism for further compacting the felted or interlaced fibers and then burnishing the outer surface thereof'. This mechanism comprises, in the form shown, a bar 18 onwhich slides a frame 19 carrying a bevel gear 20 adapted to be rotated by anv suitable means. The bevel pinion is carried by a shaft which may be driven from any suitable source of power which does not need to be shown herein. A shaft 22 is preferably mounted atan angle to the bar 18 and carries thereon a burnishing member 23 comprising a plurality of separately rotatable parts which rotate at different speeds as the horn is rotated by the driving of the bevel pinion-21.

In the carrying out of my new method the pipe 2 is pushed upwardly throughthe packing gland 4 until it occupies the dotted line position shown in Figure 1 and a liquid containing therein suspended fibrous felt or cotton linters, rag stock or other soft, suitable fibers is poured into the container 3 until it is well above the position which the top of the former will occupy when lowered into the tank 3. The former 1, comprising parts 7, 9, 10 and 11 is placed onthe base 5 and lowered into the container, to the position shown in Figure 1. Suctionapparatus connected to the pipe 2 is now operated to cause the Withdrawal of the liquid through the former 1. This causes a deposit of the fibers upon the fine mesh wire netting 10 and this operation is continued until fibers of the dei sired thickness have been deposited upon the former. On a commercial scale the container is large enough so that any desired number of horns may be made at one time.` When a sufficient amount of the fibers have been deposited upon the former to suit the re inrements of the operator, the suction is re uced and the suspended material and liquid removed from the container.

introduced into the container 3 to substantially the same height nas before and the suction is increased to cause withdrawal of the liquid through the former and deposit of a layer of pulp upon the outer surface of the will be obvious, there is considerable pressure upon the surface of the netting as the felt is beingbuilt up thereon, but the netting is sustained by the metal form 9 upon which it rests, and this in turn is sustained by the core 7. The li uid reaching perforations 8 by way of the ongitudinal and transverse channels cut in the surface of the core passes into the chamber 6, as will be readily understood, and is. withdrawn therefrom through the pipe 2 bythe suction apparatus. By reason of the operation of the vibrating apparatus 12 or other agitation, as by air jets, the liquid and the particles suspended thereby are kept in constant agitation and suspensionand the particles are prevented from settling to the bottom of the container. This also, together with the suction, causes the fibers to be deposited in accretions, the fibers interlacing and -tending to arrange themselves substantially parallel tothe direc-y tion of the surface as formed. The vibrating apparatus shown is merely typical of any one of several.which I ma employ and lwhich may be used to'vibrate t e upper portion of the container.v as shown, or may be used to vibrate both the top and bottom thereof. Also, vibration is to be understood as typical of any mode of keeping the suspension in agitation. It should perhaps be stated that during the operation just described thex'member 11 rests on the edge of the core 7 to prevent deposit of the fibrous materials thereon.

When the operation above described has been completed the former is preferably raised to the dotted line position shown in Figure 1 and the band 11 is turned up over the edge of the felt as shown in Figure 4. The former` and deposited Ifelt are then placed on the table or platform 13 and enclosed within the container 16 which, as heretofore indicated,"is held tightly against the' edge of the core by upward pressure upon the supporting memberl. Live steam is then introduced through the pipe into the container `16 land passes through the formed horn .and the former and out through pipe 14. This results in sufficient pressure upon the fibers to compact the same and the steam has a tendency to evaporate the moisture from the felt and cause a reasonable drying thereof. The purpose in turning the band Another suspension, such as paper pulp in water, is nowv felt or other fibers previously deposited. As V League 11 'over the edge of the formed horn is to 7 prevent the same from running out in a thin edge over the former and to give proper sha e to said edge.

Vghen the horn has been'properly com'- acted and dried in the manner shown inigure 4, the former and horn are removed to the spindle 24 connected with bevel gear y20, which spindle is non-circular inform and fits into a correspondingly shaped opening in the bottom of the core 7. After the arts have been arranged as shown in dottediines in vFi'ure 5, the bracket 19 is moved longitudinally along bar 18 `until bevel gear 2() meshes ywith pinion 21. Rotation of the horn has been finished in the manner indicated the horn and former are separated and i the surface of the horn may be coated either internally or externally or both, in any de sired manner, as, for example,"by metallizing, by painting, by varnishin'g, or shellacking. One method of metallizing is by spraying molten metal upon the surface thereof. l'nthe constructions shown in `Figures and 7, numeral 25 is used to designate the inner or felt layer, 26 the outer or pulp layer, 27 the outer coating and 28 the inner coating. lVliet-her oneor both surfaces ofthe horn will be coated will depend u"on thecliaracter of use which is to be ma e of this horn and the character of tones which it is desired to have produced thereby. These considerations will also determine the characteristics of the coating material to be used.

^ By fclted material, as usedin this specification and claims, is meant a material lmade from fibers'which. are interlaced 'or intertwined in a promiscuous manner but Vs ubstantially parallel to the direction of the surface being formed.'

Some people prefer, tohave the external surface of the horn left rough, as itis before submission to the burnisher or'calendering `machine, and, when this typeof finish is desired, the burnishing or calendering step is omitted.

4Also, when the type of construct-ion required necessitates a reversal of the steps ofl the process, this reversal maybe accomplished by using a. hollow form lined With netting-or` having lan equivalent construction.`

This former is. then '.placed, Withinv a con'l taincr and the two are connected 1n an airtight manner so that when suction is applied to the container the liquid of the pulp, felt,

the form to deposit the fibrous material on the interior thereof.` By this method it will be (possible to secure a roug` inner surface if esire'd, as pointed out above with regard to the outer surface. f

While in most cases it is desirable to haveV an inner dense layer backed by a softer layer, even this is not universal, since, in some cases, it. is preferable to have a softlayer for the inner surface. The arrangement of layers must be chosen in accordance with the characteristics of the sound which f i it is-desired to produce. In this connec-` tion it is noted that the horn may be made up ofrseveral layers of varyingdegreesof compactness or hardness. This is accomplished by using suspensions of different grades of fibrous material and applying each of them for a short period of time, The `fineness of-the fibrous material may `beregulated by the length of time the material is beaten when being prepared.

From the foregoing description it 4*must be evident that the process disclosed is peculiarly adapted to the production`of sound amplifier horns, first because any shape of horn may be easily made by merely changing the shape or configuration of the porous Y former; second, because of themanner in which the hornfWall is built up by accretions of fibers which lay' themselves, relatively loosely, under the infiuence of t e suction, on the porous former and therefore the horn` wall is characteristically relat-ively'soft and tends to dampen resonance which is usually set up in rigid elastic Walls by lthe sound y vibrations; third, because of the compacting of the superficial fibers of the horn Wall, as by suitable pressure (in the lillust-ratedy instance by steam pressure, or by the pressure incident to the burnishing operation) which compacting provides a relatively harder or more dense exterior Wall and a softer iiiteof the Wall as by burnishing and coating` lwith paintLvarnish or shellack or the like, provides-a somewhat polished sound reflecting surface which materially augmente the amplification of the sound. v

It is therefore understood 'that the specific description of structure and methods set forth above may be departed from Without departing from the spirit of my invention.

Havin claim;

felt andA a la er of pulp. 2. A soundY horn comprising a la er of felt and al layer of pulp and a finish or the surface thereof. v

3. lA sound horn comprising a layer of 1. `A sound horn comp-rising a layer o'f/ g now described my invention, Iy

or other suspension, will be drawn through felt, a layer of pulp exterior thereto and l havin its exterior face' burnished, and a finishing material upon the inner face thereof. j i l L 4." A. sound horn comprising a layer of fibrous animal matter 'a layer of fibrous vegetable matter exterior thereto and having its exposed lface buriiishedand covered with a finishing coat, and a coat 'of-finishing upon the inner face thereof.

.5. A sound. liorn comprising `a layer of fibrous animal matter, -a layer of fibrous vegetable matter eirterior thereto, the eX- posed face of the layer Aof fibrous animal matter being burnished, and the exposed faces of the horn having a coat of finishing material applied thereto.

6. As a new article of manufacture, a sound horn, comprising a layer of felted animal fibers and a layer of felted vegetable fibers.

7. As a new article of manufacture, a sound horn comprising a layerof felted animal fibers and a layer of feltedlvegetable fibers, and a layer of coating material ap plied to the surface of the horn.v

8. A sound horn comprising a layer of hard felted fibrous material and a layer of soft felted fibrous material.

9. A sound horn comprising a layer of hard felted fibrous material and a layer of soft felted fibrous material, the inner Surface of the horn body being hard.

10. A sound horn comprising inner and 'outer fibrous layer portions, the inner poi'- tion being harder than the outer portion.

ll. A sound horn comprising layers of felted fibrous material graduatedin hardness from one surface to the other.

l2. A sound amplifying horn comprising Walls composed of a layer of felt ber and a layer of pulp fiber, a portion of the fibers 0f these adjacent layers being intermingled.

13. A sound amplifying horn comprising Walls composed of a layer of felt and a layer of pulp exterior to the layer of pulp,l

the exterior face of the horn being burnished and the interior face of the horn having a finishing material thereon.

14. A sound amplifier having Walls com- Aprising accretions of interlaced fibers, certain of which are more closely compacted than others whereby to provide a less resov nant sound wall.

15. A sound. amplifier having Walls comprising accretions of interlaced fibers including a strata of felt fibers and a strata of pulp fibers.

16. A sound amplifier having walls comprising accretions of relatively loosely interlaced fibers, the superficial fibers of the Wall being compacted.

17. A sound amplifier having walls comprising accretions of relatively loosely interlaced fibers, whereby to dampen resonance in said Walls.

1,8. A sound amplifier having walls comprising accretions of relatively loosely interlaced fibers, the superficial fibers being compacted'and smoothed to provide sound ,refiecting surfaces.

19. A sound horn havin Walls comprising accretions of interlace fibers of pulp the superficial fibers of the horn Wall being sound reflecting surfaces and substantially non-resonant walls.

20. A sound horn comprising a layer of hardl felted fibrous material and a layer of soft felted fibrous material, the fibers of the adjacent surface of the two layers being interlaced.

21. As a new article of manufacture, a sound horn, comprising la `layer of felted animal fibers and a layer of felted vegetable fibers, a portion of the fibers of one layer being intermingledwith a portion of the fibers of the other layer.

22. A sound amplifier having walls comprising two layers of accretions of interlaced fibers, tlie fibers in one layer being of a different material than the fibers in the other layer and a portion of the fibers in one layer being interlaced with a portion of the fibers in the adjacent layers.

23. As a new article of manufacture, a sound horn having a wall comprising accretions of inter aced fibers, the fibers 'in a portion of the Walls being-.of a different material and having -different resonance characteristics than the fibers in another portion of the Wall. l

24. A sound horn having a Wall coin rising accretions of interlaced fibers, the fibers in one portion of the Walls being of a different material and having different resonance characteristics than the fibers in an adjacent portion of the wall,- fibers in one portion being interlaced with fibers in the adjacent portion.

25. A sound horn comprising accretions of interlaced fibers.

In Witness whereof, I hereunto my name to this specification.

JESSE B. HAWLEY.

subscribe compacted, smoothed and coated to provide Patent No. 1,624,242.

Certificate of Correction.

i Granted April 1172, 1927, to JESSEB. HAWLEY.

` It is hereby certified' thaty error appears in thegprinted speciiication of the abovenumbered patent requiring correction as follows: Page l, line 17, after the Word otherwise insert the Word treated; and that the said Letters Patent should be read with this correction therein that the samey may conform to the recordof the case in the Patent Office.

Signed and sealed this 7th day of June, A. D. 1927.

[1.. 3.] 4 v M. J. MOORE,

Acting Uommz'ssz'oner of Patents. 

